Adjustable window curtain



Aug. 29, 1950 c. s. ROBERTSON ADJUSTABLE WINDOW CURTAIN Filed Nov. 8, 1947 Patented Aug. 29d, 1950 v.-Arglaii' OFFICE Application November 8, 1947, YSerial No. 784,891

"example, if a curtain'section embodyingthe invention'istoo short for a particular window casing with-which it is to' be associated,` it may be quickly lengthened a predetermined amount without affecting the appearance of the curtain section or, when la curtain section is to be laundered vfor thefirst time,v it 4may be lengthened before or `after laundering to* add length-approximating the normal shrinkage which resultsfrom laundering.

Window curtainsv customarily' Iare 'not preshrunk. Hence there is substantial shrinkage incident to thefirst laundering. When' a curtainstretching frame is available",l the curtain sections may be stretched on thej'frame while wet yand 'be permitted to dry in the stretched condition; thereby avoiding any substantial changes in ldimensions due to shrinkage`- ljlowever,y use of stretching and drying frames takes considerable time and care to properly mount a curtain section thereon, and a stretching frame. is not available in a great majority of homes.V 'It "is desirable, therefore, to provide window curtains whichy may be washedand-ironed according to generallaundering Procedures with built-in provision 'for compensating for shrinkage incident to' the initial laundering. .A lso, it `frequently happens that lengtheningof curtains is .desired apart from any question of shrinkage.

' It is among the objects of the presenty inventionl to provide ii/'lindert'` curtains which -rea'dily maybe. -lensthrledI a predetermined 'amount by merely Vpulli'r-ig out arow of stitches, at top 'or bottom or both* therebylto, add thepredeterrnined length or lengths tothe main body of the curtain panetswithout affecting in any way `the general appearance of the curtains when mounted. A multi-thick band of the curtain material is. provided at the top. or.b,o,ttorr1r of each. curtain section .or,pane1 or lat both top and bottom, with the excess thickness at the Ytop hidden behind the customary rod pocket or casing, and, if at the bnttom,-.hi ddenbe hind the yusual wide hem. The excess thicknesses-are maintained by one or more rows of chain stitchesI or therlike and may be released to .join .themain bod-y of the panel by merely.v pulling out the row or rows of chain Stitching; y

Alfiotherv object of .thei-nvention istY tov provide a Window Qmtan. Settim-i or panel. having hidden (iCl.

of the pull-out stitches.

excess material releasably -secured in a ban across an end portionof the section, with `means at the rear-side of the 'section releasably securing the means forrreleasing the said excess material. According to the invention,Y the excess'material is releasably held by chain stitching, and a pull thread of the chain stitching is releasably lsecured by a sheet member f'which falls away from the'curtain section when the rexcess material is releasedinto the main body of the panel.

A furtherob-ject is tov 4provide a curtain section or-panel having excess material concealed at the rear side of an end region theerof, with pull-out Ystitches'maintaining theexcess' material in folded relation and adapted to release the excess material into the mainbody of Ythe panel as a'result of pulling an accessible end portion of a 'thread It is a Afeature of the invention that the pullthread at the rear'side of the curtain section may be red or any other color to distinguish it 'from other threads inthe curtain, and the vsheet inember for-releasably securing the end portion of the pull-thread may have instructions thereon for yletting down or lengthening thev section.

It is, moreover, my purpose and object generally'to improve the structure and adaptability tion of a curtain'section or panel embodying features of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of the'right-hand.

corner portion of the curtain section of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is aV cross-sectional View, somewhat diagrammatic, on line 3 3 of Fig. 2, on a larger scale;

Fig. 4 is a View similar to Fig. 3 but showing the excess material released and. dropped down into the main body of the section or panel;

Fig. 5 is an edge elevation of a modified form with the excess folds of material secured in place at the top band;

Fig. 6 isa View similar to` Fig. 5 but W-ith the excess folds released and dropped into the main body ofthe panel;

Fig. '7A is an edge elevation of another modification showing excess folds secured at the top band; and Y i Fig. 8 is a rear elevation of the curtain section of Fig. 7. v

Referring to the drawing, the curtain body or panel HJ is representative of curtain panels generally, and is shown as `having an inneredge rutile i2; and an Outer edge hem i4. A depending 3 ruffle I6 may extend across the upper portion of the panel or, if desired, the ruile I6 may be applied so as to have its main width disposed generally above the rows of stitching 33 which secure the ruiiie to the panel, or may be omitted entirely, as in the modifications of Figs. -8.

According tothe invention either the top or bottom end portions of the panel, or both top and bottom end portions, may be extended a predetermined amount to compensate for shrinkage or to change the length of the panel for any other reason. As herein represented in Figs. 1-4, the upper end portion of the panel Ill is folded to provide a top band having four thicknesses of the panel material as indicated at 20, 22, 24, 26 in Fig. 3. Preferably the top edge margin is folded upon the adjacent panel stock as at 28, comparable to a hem, and this hem 23 is buried within the lower edge fold between the thicknesses 22, 26, and the hem and the thicknesses 22, 2B are stitched together as at 3E). The stitches 30 also may secure the top ruiiie I6 in place, or the ruflie may be separately stitched. Another row of stitches 32, inward from the top edge of the band, has its stitches extending only through the thicknesses 26, 24, so that a usual curtainrod pocketY 34 is provided by the thicknesses 25, 24 between the stitches 3l), 32.

Still another row of stitches 36 has its stitch threads extending through all of the thicknesses 20,22, 24 and 26 andV through a member 38 of sheet material at the rear side of the top band of thegcurtain While the stitches 30 and 32 preferably are lock-stitches, or other comparable stitches of more or less permanentV nature, the stitches 36 preferably are chain stitches or the like, for a purpose which presently will appear. The chain stitching 3S may start from either the Vinner or outer edge and run all the way across the curtain section, and the member 38 is stitched in place by the final few stitches of the row, herein shown at the outer edge of the panel Iii.

It is a well known characteristic of chain` Vstitching that the end of the thread which secures the stitches in succession must be secured at the end of a row of such stitching to avoid a pulling out of the stitches merely by pulling the end of the thread. The invention utilizes this characteristic of chain stitching t0 provide a curtain'panel which, initially, may have a particular predetermined length but which is capable of being extended at top or bottom or both to provideV extra length, or to restore the panel approximately to its initial length following a normal shrinkage of the panel due to laundering.

According to the invention, instead of knotting the end of the chain-stitch thread, an end portion of the thread is releasably held by the member 38. Any suitable means may be provided on member 38 for removably holding an end portion of the pull thread. As herein shown, it has a slit 39 (Fig. 3) extending inward from its edge, and the end portion of the chain stitch pull thread, indicated at 40 in Fig. 3, may be engaged and pinched in the slit so that it is secure during such time as the panel may be used with its initial length, and is conveniently available for being gripped by the fingers and released from member 38 at such time as it may be desired to lengthen the panel by pulling out the stitches 35 thereby to release member 38 so that it may drop off, and to release the upper portions of thicknesses 28, 22 so that these thicknesses may fall away from the top band andbecome a part of the main-body of the panel asillustrated in Fig. 4

The visual appearance of the curtain or panel is the same before and after the lengthening.

When a chain stitch formed by two threads is used, the thread which is visible at the front side of the curtain may be of a color to blend with the color of the curtain material, and the thread at the rear side, which is the pull thread of the invention, .conveniently may be red or some other distinguishing color which'may be readily visible as the pull thread. Also, the member 38 may contain printed directions indicating the thread which is to be pulled when a Vlengthening of the curtain is desired.

Figs. 5 and 6 illustrate a modification in which the stitches 30' do not extend through the thickness 22. The ruille i6 of Figs. 3 and 4 also is omitted, although a ruffle may be applied if desired. When the chain stitches 35 in Fig. 5 are pulled out, the thicknesses 20, 22 drop down as before but, as seen in Fig. 6, the body panel is a smooth continuation of the thickness 24.

In Figs. 7 and 8, two rows of chain stitches 36 are shown, and the member 38' is held by both rows, and both rows must be pulled out to effect a lengthening of the panel. In other respects, the Figs. 7 and 8 form is generally similar to the Figs. 5 and 6 form, both rows of chain stitches having a loose end portion of thread pinched in slit 39 of member 38.

It will be apparent that the invention provides a simple yet effective means for quickly lengthening a curtain panel by merely pulling out a row of stitching a thread of which has an end portion conveniently removably retained by a member 38 or 38 at the rear of the panel, and which may be designated by suitable instructions on the retaining member and rendered distinctive by its color. The saine lengthening means may be provided at top and bottom of a panel, or at either top or bottom.

While I have illustrated the invention as having four thicknesses of the panel material at the region which is adapted to be let out for lengthening the panel, it should be understood that more or less than the illustrated number of thicknesses may be provided so long as one or more of the folded-over portions of the panel is adapted to be released into the main body of the panel.

Also, it should be understood that the folds at the plural-thick extension region may be held by any suitable securing means, and it is intended that the invention shall not be limited to the stitching as illustrated. For example, those folds which are expected to be permanent throughout the life of a curtain may be secured by a water- .insoluble adhesive, and the fold or folds which are expected to be let out for lengthening purposes after Washing may be secured by a Watersoluble adhesive which will dissolve and wash away during the first Washing of the curtain, thereby letting out a fold or folds which may compensate for shrinkage.

of said pull thread in a, position to be readily gripped by the lingers.

2. A window curtain comprising ra panel of exible sheet material having an end portion thereof folded over upon itself and stitched toprovide a, rod-receiving pocket extending across said end portion of the panel, means including a pull thread rele-asably securing plural thicknesses of the panel material in folded relation behind said pocket, said plural thicknesses being displaced from the region adjacent to the inner edge of said pocket, and a member stitched to the curtain at the rear side of said plural thicknesses of the panel material and at one end of said pocket, said member having clamping means thereon releasably securing an end portion of said pull thread.

3. A window curtain comprising a panel of flexible sheet material having an end portion thereof folded back and forth upon itself to provide a multi-thick band of the -panel material extending across said end portion of the panel, a row of stitching permanently securing together the two foremost thicknesses of said band at a location substantially inward from the outer edge of the band thereby to provide a rod-receiving pocket extending across said end portion of the panel, another row of stitching securing together all of the thicknesses of said band adjacent to the outer edge of the band, the latter said stitches being chain stitches and including a pull thread for pulling out the stitches thereby to release all but said two foremost thicknesses for a predetermined lengthening of the panel, and a generally fiat member secured to the rear side of the curtain by said chain stitches and releasably holding a pull-end of said pull thread.

4. A window curtain comprising a panel of flexible sheet material having an end portion thereof folded back and forth upon itself to provide a multi-thick band of the panel material extending across said end portion of the panel, a row of stitching permanently securing together the two foremost thicknesses of said band at a location substantially inward from the outer edge of the band thereby to provide a rod-receiving pocket extending across said end portion of the panel, a member of flexible sheet material arranged behind said band at one end thereof, a

second row of stitching extending through all of 50 the thicknesses of the band and through said member, the latter said stitches being chain stitches including a pull thread for pulling out the stitches thereby to release all but said two foremost thicknesses for a predetermined lengthening o-f the panel, and means on said member releasably securing an end portion of said pull thread.

5. A window curtain comprising a panel of flexible material having an end portion thereof folded upon itself to provide a band across said end portion of the panel having at least four thicknesses of the panel material therein, a row of stitching permanently securing together the two foremost thicknesses of the band at a region substantially inward from the outer edge of the band thereby to provide an open-ended rod-receiving pocket across the said end portion of the panel, a member made of sheet material arranged behind said band at one end thereof, a second row of stitching releasably securing together all of the thicknesses of the band and releasably securing said member to the band, the latter said stitches being chain stitches including a pull thread at the rear side of the band, and means on said member releasably securing an end portion of said pull thread.

6. A window curtain comprising a panel of flexible sheet material having a rod-receiving pocket extending across an end portion of the panel, at least one fold of the panel material arranged in plural thicknesses behind the pocket, means securing said plural thicknesses in the said folded relation behind said pocket, including a pull-thread adapted to be quickly pulled free of the curtain and to thereby release at least one of said plural thicknesses for unfolding into the main body of the panel, and a label held on the rear side of the curtain by said securing means and having `a portion for releasably holding a pull-end of said pull-thread.

CHARLES S. ROBERTSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,079,831 Bauer, Jr., et al May 11, 1937 2,177,587 Woelfel, Sr Oct. 24, 1939 2,308,411 Wolfsin Jan. 12, 1943 2,416,448 Lepow Feb. 25, 1947 

